


Name Calling

by failingandhiding



Category: Higher Ground
Genre: F/F, mostly friendshipy thing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-13
Updated: 2013-07-13
Packaged: 2017-12-20 02:40:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,179
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/881989
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/failingandhiding/pseuds/failingandhiding
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An extended version of the bathroom scene in episode 21, while Shelby grieves her sisters disappearance and Juliette attempts bulimia once again. Just something I wrote last night.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Name Calling

“Why do you always call me Princess?”

Shelby started at the words, waking from her almost coma-like daydreams and lifting her head to stare, only to realise that she in fact couldn’t see the owner of the voice anyway, only that stained white wall of the toilet cubical. “What?”

“Princess, you call me Princess. Why?”

Shelby scoffed but it morphed into a sniff before she could stop it. It had barely been a minute of silence, but she couldn’t expect much more from the other girl, could she? Silent companionship had never really been Juliette’s strongpoint. “I call you Queenie too.”

The brunette’s sigh echoed through the room and Shelby felt her mouth creep up at the sides. It was so easy to toy with Juliette, too easy. Sadly, she didn’t stay quiet for too long, no matter what the blonde said or did to try and stop her. “Then why do you call me Queenie too?” There it was –that comeback that sent tiny ripples of annoyance through Shelby. Backfire.

“You’re a spoilt rich girl, what else should I call you?” There, that’ll keep her silent for a moment or too. Shelby hadn’t hidden in the bathroom to talk to Juliette; she had hidden in there to mourn her family. The one that kept falling apart around here just when she thought she had it patched up together again.

But if that was so, why had she said anything when Juliette entered the stall next to her? To stop her getting sick? Why would she care, she’d already made it clear that she didn’t care… right?

Well if she had wanted to talk, she was getting it now. “You never call me ‘Stick’,” came Juliette’s silky voice from the other side of the plastic walls. “Or ‘Twig’, or anything like that. Why?”

“You could’ve asked that first.”

“You wouldn’t have answered me.” That little twang was present now, the warning that she was serious. Not a threat of course, Juliette couldn’t exactly threaten anyone, but just a warning that she was ready to push.

She was right. But that didn’t mean Shelby had to admit it to her. She’d walk over hot coals before she’d admit that to her. Or anyone. “I would have.”

She could almost see Juliette smiling smirk and winced a little inside. “Then answer me now.”

That was the moment Shelby took a minute to stop and think. Why didn’t she call Juliette any of those names? Everyone else did, Scott picked up on it barely a week into school. Even Auggie did, but that seemed strange to everyone except the two involved, and Juliette never told him to stop it. She never told anyone too.

Truly, Shelby wasn’t sure why she didn’t call her those names. But now that she actually took the time (time that Juliette hadn’t already interrupted, thankfully) to think about it, she assumed that she had just picked up ‘Princess’ and ‘Queenie’ and ran with those. They caught on well, got a few laughs out of people for the first few weeks, so why shouldn’t she have used them. And calling her ‘Twig’ was wrong…

Wait what? Shelby frowned a little at her own train of thought. Since when did she not do something because it was wrong? She called Juliette bulimic. She had barely ten minutes ago. But then again, that was the medical term, like calling someone diabetic. She had referenced it plenty of times, but almost never to Juliette’s face… why?

Shelby realised all of a sudden, that she couldn’t answer the question asked of her. She didn’t know why she didn’t attack Juliette like that; it was open season as far as anyone else was concerned. Why didn’t she join in?

Juliette was still waiting for her answer, finally leaning up from the wall to look in Shelby’s general direction. “Shelby?” she said, almost a little worried about breaking the silence when all was going well between them for the first time in months.

The girl in question sighed deeply, rolling her eyes and shaking her head. “I don’t know. I guess I’ve never really thought about it.” Shelby creased her eyebrows in thought. “Why does it matter?”

Shelby could almost hear the gears in Juliette’s mind turning. It didn’t matter, and even if it did, it wasn’t important enough to deserve a whole conversation. Especially something this drawn out in a public bathroom. “Just curious.” Was the delayed, timid reply that almost felt like the subject would be dropped, but Shelby knew better than to believe that.

A moment of blissful silence passed, but neither girl moved to leave the bathroom, or even to stretch their legs out. Juliette sighed weakly, realising that Shelby wouldn’t start talking again until she did. As usual.

Juliette didn’t exactly like the blonde. She had absolutely no reason to ever even consider liking her, or consider her anything other than a gentle ‘frenemy’ type relationship. Shelby seemed to hate her enough to jibe anything and everything she did, and their rare showing of emotion towards each other were to sort lived to really mean anything.

All and all, Juliette never felt fully comfortable being close with her, but she tried to make it work. Shelby knew she was making the effort, and every so often she’d let her in and treat her like a friend for a while, like the night of the race after-party, or right that moment. It was nice when they could get along, like all the effort was actually worth it. But sometimes, Juliette worried that she was wasting her time.

This was one of the most enriching conversations they had ever had, and it wasn’t even face to face. That was the kind of relationship they had built over the year. And Juliette didn’t like it.

So Juliette huffed out a tired breath and, when she had settled her stomach a little, left the stall, much to Shelby’s wonder. But that wonder didn’t last too long, when she heard knuckles tapping against her door. “Will you come out?”

“No.” It sounded more biting than Shelby had meant it too, but she couldn’t leave. No way would she let Juliette see her cry. Silly of her to think Juliette would leave her that quickly though, and when she saw the lock on the door begin to turn itself, she let out a slow sigh of defeat.

The door swung open a bumped against the wall, barely making a sound, and Shelby curled further into herself as the other girl came into view. Juliette’s little hum of understanding sent waves of annoyance through her entire body, but she did nothing to stop her sliding into the stall and closing the door behind her, but not locking it. At least she had tried to protect the last of Shelby’s dignity…

But as she felt Juliette move closer to her and wrap her up in a half hug, full of nerves and sympathy, Shelby realised, just for that moment, that dignity really meant nothing to her anymore.


End file.
